OTC nursing student applauds Veterans Upward Bound outreach

OTC practical nursing student Penny Kimball is committed to caring for fellow veterans. A U.S. Army veteran herself, Penny wants to work as a nurse in the Veterans Administration System someday. In the meantime, she’s proud to serve as an advocate for OTC’s Veterans Upward Bound program.

Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) is a college-readiness program that provides advising, academic support, financial aid guidance and veterans’ benefits counseling to participants – all for free. Funding for the program is provided by a $1.3 million Federal TRIO Grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

The college plans to serve more than 100 veterans each year over the life of the five-year grant.

“It’s an awesome resource – I wish more vets knew about it,” Penny said. “I can’t tell you how much it helps to work with like-minded people who understand who we are and where we’re coming from.”

Penny was already a student at OTC when the VUB program began last fall, but she was eager to help the staff recruit local veterans in need of their services. At Penny’s suggestion, the VUB program hired U.S. Army veteran Alex Simpson as a tutor to support students with their assignments, research papers and even scholarship application essays.

“Mr. Simpson has been an amazing tutor, and all of the VUB staff care about our success in school,” she said. “It’s so important for us to have a good support system.”

Penny recalled how intimidated she felt going to college after wrapping up her service in the military. She credits one of her instructors, Dr. Sherry Taylor, dean of Allied Health, for giving her the encouragement needed to pursue her practical nursing certificate.

“I would not be halfway through the LPN program if it wasn’t for instructors like Dr. Taylor,” Penny said. “She’s the one who helped me to take that first step.”

Penny will graduate in December with her practical nursing certificate. She says she considers herself to be a fairly reserved person, but her journey through nursing school has been nothing short of emotional.

“I’ve never been an academically minded person, but I’ve always worked hard,” she explained. “When I was in the military, I served two tours in Iraq. I jumped out of planes. I completed truck driving school and EMT school. But this whole nursing school thing, I’ve never pushed myself this hard, and I’ve never been more proud.”

About Veterans Upward Bound

Veterans Upward Bound is a federally funded grant program designed to help veterans navigate the college environment. The following services are free to eligible participants:

Tutoring and instruction in reading, writing, math, science and other subjects

Veteran educational benefits

How to pay for college with other forms of financial aid and scholarships

Career exploration and counseling

Academic advising

College placement test exam preparation

Campus visits to other colleges

Cultural activities

Other referrals

If you or someone you know would benefit from the free services provided by Veterans Upward Bound, visit otc.edu/vub or call (417) 447-7840.